Police in south Wales have arrested 12 people during a fuel price protest in which traffic was brought to a standstill and a major bridge blocked during Monday's morning rush hour.
Gwent Police closed off the M4 Prince of Wales Bridge linking England to the Welsh cities of Newport and Cardiff, after activists caused “significant delays” to the flow of vehicles in both directions. In a bid to send a message to the government about rising fuel prices, activists drove in a convoy at a snail's pace along the busy route.
The protest was organised by Stand Up To Fuel Prices, a group which is demanding the government slash duty tax on petrol and diesel amid the worsening cost-of-living crisis. Prices at the pump have been climbing steadily for months, due to higher post-pandemic demand and western sanctions against Russia, one of the world’s largest oil exporters.
The average price of a litre of petrol at UK forecourts reached a new high of 191.5p on Sunday, data firm Experian said. The average price of diesel was 199.0p per litre.
Other groups of protesters operating under the same banner targeted the nearby Severn Bridge and other locations in south Wales.
Chief Supt Tom Harding of Gwent Police confirmed officers had arrested 12 people for breaching the legal notice issued by the police prior to the protest by driving at under 30mph for “a prolonged amount of time”.
“Over the last two weeks, we have been working jointly with a number of partners to ensure that emergency and critical services could continue and to prevent serious disruption to both road users and local communities,” Chief Supt Harding said.
“The right to protest under UK law must be balanced with the rights of the wider community who may be affected. By implementing restrictions on the moving protest, we aimed to protect the public and local communities.
“Along with partners, we identified that failing to comply with the legal notice requirements would lead to emergency and critical services being restricted therefore posing a risk to local communities, action was taken when I deemed these risks existed.
“We are aware of other driving offences, not connected to the protest, such as the use of a mobile phone whilst driving. These offences will be dealt with appropriately.”
Earlier, he had said there were "significant delays both east and westbound on the Prince of Wales Bridge due to the planned protest" after confirming the bridge “is currently closed as we carry out a number of arrests”.
“We hope to open roads as soon as possible."
He later confirmed the bridge had been reopened and the area had been cleared of demonstrators.
Avon and Somerset Police, the force that covers the territory on the English side of the bridge, said the disruption caused by the protest stretched into Bath, 42 kilometres to the east.
“There are delays on the M4 eastbound at the moment around the Bath area due to a roadblock protest,” the force tweeted. “However, traffic is still moving at this time.”
Fuel protests were also held in Leeds, Yorkshire, causing disruption to traffic at Ferrybridge. Activists placed a spiked strip across lanes to prevent drivers from continuing with their journeys. In Essex, demonstrators staged a “go slow” protest, in which a convoy of cars and vans crawled along the A12 carriageway at 10mph.
Vicky Stamper, 41, was among the protesters gathered at Magor services on the M4 between the Prince of Wales Bridge and Newport on Monday.
The former HGV driver, from Cwmbran, said she and her partner Darren had to leave jobs in Bristol because they could not afford the fuel any longer. “We had to leave those jobs because it was costing us £380 [$459] a week just to get to and from work,” she said.
“I then lost a job two weeks ago because the company couldn’t afford to put fuel in that many lorries, so last in, first out.”
She said the situation had taken an emotional toll on her and her family.
Talking about the disruption the protest would cause to drivers, Ms Stamper said: “We’re doing this for us and for them. If they want to have a moan, they should join us instead.”
When asked what she would ask Prime Minister Boris Johnson to do, she said: “Resign.”
Frustrated commuters vented their anger at activists on social media.
Steven Nott tweeted: “To everyone involved in the protest and blocking of both the Severn Bridge and the Prince of Wales Bridge on July 4, please be aware that many of us who commute can ill afford to lose a day’s pay and it will have more impact on people like us than those in Westminster.”
West Yorkshire Police said a “small group” of motorists were protesting in Ferrybridge.
“There is currently no disruption to the motorway network in the rush-hour period, but we would advise drivers to avoid Ferrybridge services,” a spokesman for the force said. “We acknowledge the importance of lawful protests but will deal swiftly with any criminal offences.
“It is clear deliberate disruption of the network will inconvenience huge numbers of people, draw police resources away from other important work and potentially delay the response times of all emergency services.”
The Conservative-led government said criticised the nature of the protests
“While we respect the right to protest, people’s day-to-day lives should not be disrupted, especially on busy motorways where lives are put at risk and resulting traffic delays will only add to fuel use,” a spokesman for No 10 Downing Street said. “The new Public Order Bill will make it a criminal offence to glue yourself to a dangerous motorway, which sees police spending hours trying to safely remove people.”
